Identifying the Field of Health Communication

Abstract

This empirical investigation addresses four paradigmatically framed research questions to illuminate the epistemological status of the field of health communication, systematically addressing the limitations of existing disciplinary introspections. A content analysis of published health communication research indicated that the millennium marked a new stage of health communication research with a visible shift onto macro-level communication of health information among nonhealth professionals. The analysis also revealed the emergence of a paradigm around this particular topic area, with its contributing scholars predominantly sharing postpositivistic thought traditions and cross-sectional survey-analytic methodologies. More interdisciplinary collaborations and meta-theoretical assessments are needed to facilitate a continued growth of this evolving paradigm, which may advance health communication scholars in their search for a disciplinary identity.

Stakeholders’ participation in hospitals’ branding initiatives on social media: a proposal model for building collective brands

“…Managing efficiently corporate communication has become a strategic priority for most hospitals (Hannawa, García-Jiménez, Candrian, Rossmann, & Schulz, 2015). This activity determines health professionals' performance, their relationships with patients as well as the hospital internal functioning at a whole (Brent, 2016).…”

Office for the Study of Aging at the University of South Carolina: Promoting Healthy Aging Through Program Development, Evaluation, Education/Training, and Research for South Carolina’s Older Adults

“…The existence of a broader interdisciplinary field of study, in association with a medical field of knowledge in geriatrics, creates a powerful and specialized body of knowledge (Bass, 2013). A broader interdisciplinary field of study allows for collaboration across a multitude of specialties utilizing a common language and purpose (Hannawa, Garcia-Jimenez, Candrian, Rossmann, & Schulz, 2015). The field of gerontology must continue to address boundary issues that exist within academic disciplines and the appropriate distinctions between a "gerontologist" and "a public health aging researcher."…”

“…The existence of a broader interdisciplinary field of study, in association with a medical field of knowledge in geriatrics, creates a powerful and specialized body of knowledge (Bass, 2013). A broader interdisciplinary field of study allows for collaboration across a multitude of specialties utilizing a common language and purpose (Hannawa, Garcia-Jimenez, Candrian, Rossmann, & Schulz, 2015). The field of gerontology must continue to address boundary issues that exist within academic disciplines and the appropriate distinctions between a “gerontologist” and “a public health aging researcher.” Regardless of that, the development of networks of scholars focused on aging and gerontology, within the fields of health sciences, social sciences, and medicine, creates a collaboratory body in which to leverage in developing and advocating for policies and programs that can be easily developed, translated, and shared broadly.…”

Sağlık iletișiminde paradigma ihtiyacı: Disiplinlerarası ișbirliğine çağrı

“…Sağlık iletişimi araştırmalarının kökeni başka ifadelerle, "aile disiplini" veya "soy ağacı", belirsizliğini sürdürmek-tedir (15). Diğer bir deyişle alanın ortaya çıkışına katkı sağlayan araştır-macılar çoğunlukla tıp ve iletişim alanından gelmektedir.…”

“…Bu yeni yüzyılda, eleşti-rel düşünce geleneğinden önemli ölçüde etkilenmiş olan iletişim disiplininden epistemolojik olarak kendi şeklini çizmiştir. The Healthy People 2020 hedefleri doğrultusunca özellikle sağlık bilgisi, sağlık bilgi teknolojisi ve sağlık diplomasisinde yeni çalışma alanları belirleyerek şimdi "politika yapıcıları, iş, sağlık ve kamu sağlığı uzmanlarını ve kamuyu sağlık iletişim stratejilerini ve sağlık bilgi teknolojilerini kullanmak, nüfusu, sağlık sonuç-larını ve sağlık hizmet kalitesini geliş-tirmek, sağlık eşitliğini gerçekleştir-mek üzere" çağırmaktadır (15).…”